Grant to fund apartment renovation

The owner of the property has been approved for a $319,700 grant to aid in funding the project.

A Community Development Block Grant will help owner Thomas W. Pauken foot the bill for the $639,442 renovation. Pauken said work on the more than 80-year-old building will begin soon.

"We're excited about what's happening on Polk Street and the night life and all," Pauken said. "Particularly, a lot of young professionals will have an easy commute to work and then can go out to dinner at night and walk to that. We're excited about getting the downtown back to its glory."

The Parkview Apartments, 1320 S. Fillmore St., were condemned last year and nearly demolished by the city until Pauken asked city commissioners to save the building from the wrecking ball.

Pauken is looking at a complete renovation of the building, turning it into an 11-unit, gated complex.

He's taking part in the Rental Rehabilitation Program, which allows property owners to use grant funds to pay for up to half of the rehabilitation costs in return for maintaining rents at affordable rates for five to 10 years depending on the grant amount invested per unit. The Parkview Apartments will have to meet affordable rent guidelines for the next 10 years.

"We think that area is coming back and will come back in the future. It's really a very nice old complex," Pauken said. "I just think that that area is going to get better and better and we were fortunate to save that building from demolition."

For the most part, area residents said they would encourage more housing downtown and more housing for lower- to middle-income residents.

"I think we have a lot of apartments for lower price, but they're not good ones," said Maegan Arnold. "The apartments closer to downtown would get more people to move downtown."

Tarika Harper of Amarillo agreed.

"We need some more low-income housing because some people can't afford housing," she said.

Martha McCollum and her daughter, Misty, went apartment hunting recently.

"We need some low-budget places to rent. There's a lot of single parents here. The wages in Amarillo, you have to admit, aren't very much," Martha McCollum said.

Parkview Apartments have been vacant since 2003 and soon will be remodeled into 10 one-bedroom units and one two-bedroom unit, plus a community laundry room. Pauken said he's expecting the renovations to take about six months. Currently, the building is having asbestos removed.

Pauken also manages the Fillmore Lofts and the Renaissance Condominiums projects. Pauken said the Renaissance Condominiums are completely rented out and he expects the Fillmore Lofts to open for rental in mid-August.